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Scott Walker Owns the Kimberly-Clark Layoffs

Posted February 1, 2018

Republicans trickle-down economic & tax policies cost Wisconsin jobs

MADISON -- Yesterday, Kimberly-Clark, a paper-based manufacturing company, announced that it was shuttering two facilities in the Fox Valley. The closure of these facilities, Neenah Nonwovens and the Cold Springs plant, will cost 600 Wisconsin workers their jobs.

Kimberly-Clark’s Chief Financial Officer, Maria Henry stated clearly that these closures were prompted by the recent Republican tax bill, promoted by Gov. Scott Walker and pushed into law by Speaker Paul Ryan and Sen. Ron Johnson to enrich their corporate backers. Henry said that the GOP tax bill provides capital for their “restructuring” and layoff plans, so they can still have “flexibility to continue to allocate significant capital to shareholders.”

Translation: The Republican tax bill allows them to close factories and ship jobs out of Wisconsin while making their rich shareholders even richer.

“Wisconsin deserves a governor who stands up for workers and fights to keep jobs,” said Democratic Party Chair Martha Laning. “Walker has shown that he’s not interested in making efforts to stop Wisconsin plant closings like Oscar Mayer and Appleton Coated. Republican tax and economic policy focuses only on those in the boardroom, not the workers in the lunchroom.”

Wisconsin deserves to know: Did Walker do anything to keep these good jobs and factories in Wisconsin? Did he meet with Kimberly Clark or make any attempt to stop the job cuts caused by Republican tax plans?

During his 25 years in public office, Walker has pushed tax policy that benefits the ultra wealthy and mega-corporations he serves. A prime example of this is his 2011 tax cut said to benefit manufacturing, which in reality focused on billionaires. A full 75% of the benefits of this Republican tax cut went to individuals with a yearly income over $1 million. By the end of 2019, this Walker tax bill will have cost Wisconsin taxpayers $1.3 billion - $1 billion of which will have gone to the wealthy elite.

Had Republicans tax giveaways required supporting jobs here in our state and country, Kimberly-Clark may not be laying off 600 Wisconsinites

Making matters even worse is Walker’s reckless and shockingly expensive giveaway to Foxconn. Revised estimates show the deal now costing $4.5 billion, most of which is a cash payment to a giant foreign corporation, and the tab is continues to rise.

The shuttering of two more major manufacturing facilities begs the question: why are we giving away so much to billionaires and Foxconn when Wisconsin businesses are struggling?

“Workers are losing their jobs due to Scott Walker and Republicans failed trickle-down economics,” added Laning. “They keep showering the ultra-rich and giant corporations with our hard-earned tax dollars, and the only thing that trickles down from it are pink slips.”